Many construction projects are engineered to employ elongate members, referred to as piles, which are inserted into the earth. Piles are engineered in many different physical configurations depending upon the location and use of the pile. Typically, pile driving systems and methods are used to facilitate the insertion of a pile into the earth. The physical characteristics of the pile to be driven into the earth and the nature of the earth where the pile is to be driven typically determine the nature of the pile driving system.
Pile driving systems can be categorized as hammer systems, vibratory systems, crowding systems, and certain combinations of these systems. The present invention is of particular significance in the context of a hammer pile driving system and will be described herein in that context. A hammer pile driving system can take many forms, but each of these forms results in a weighted member generating a series of impact forces substantially along the longitudinal axis of the pile in the direction of the earth.
One purpose of the present invention is to provide improved hammer drive systems and methods of the present invention.